Moccasins Have Faith In Johnson

November 23, 1986|By Mike Zizzo of The Sentinel Staff

Florida Southern guard Jerry Johnson will not have his name splashed across sports headlines or be among the top scorers in the Sunshine State Conference this season. But he will be the key ingredient in the Moccasins' quest for a return trip to the NCAA Division II Final Four in Springfield, Mass.

Florida Southern (24-9 overall last year, 9-3 in SSC), which was eliminated by eventual champion Sacred Heart (Conn.) in the Final Four last year, will be relying on Johnson to control the tempo of the offense and funnel the ball to the squad's scoring threats.

''I'll have to run the show from my position and make sure everybody is doing what they are supposed to,'' Johnson said. ''I'll have to provide leadership on the team.''

Johnson, a 5-foot-11, 160-pound junior, is closing in on the school's career assist record. He enters the season with 318 assists, just 61 shy of the mark of 378 set by Scott Pospichal from 1980 to 1982. Last season Johnson was the Moccasins' third-leading scorer (9.8 ppg), led the SSC in assists (178) and finished runner-up in steals (59) en route to all-conference honors. ''I'm basically a quick-thinking player, and I'll react to how the defense is moving,'' Johnson said. ''If I'm getting pressured, I'm allowed to take my man on one-on-one at any given time.''

Since arriving from Miami Killian High School, Johnson has been a model of durability and consistency. After earning the starting nod in the sixth game of his freshman season, Johnson has started in 59 consecutive games and has averaged 9.6 points, 5 assists and 1.8 steals.

Johnson will be engineering an offense that has been harnessed by the departure of All-America forward John McNulty and All-SSC forward Glenn Hanson, who were 1-2, respectively, in scoring and rebounding last year.

Coach George Scholz, who is entering his fifth season at Florida Southern, is banking on the emergence of returnees Kris Kearney, a 6-foot-7 sophomore forward, and Phil Holder, a 6-foot-5 senior forward, to fill the voids on the front line.

Kearney, who started in 19 of 29 games, averaged 8.3 points and 4.8 rebounds but turned in solid performances in the post-season. Holder, who managed just two starts, was the Moccasins' fifth-leading scorer (8.6 ppg) while shooting a team-high 60 percent.

William Wilcox, a 6-foot-4 senior, averaged 9.4 points and 4.0 rebounds and will shuttle between the guard and forward slots and add depth and experience to both positions.